By BECKY KISER
Hays Post
Maayan Paz now sleeps with his phone close to his head and "hopes nothing happens."
The 21-year-old freshman at Fort Hays State University is an Israeli native who just moved to Hays from his hometown of Jerusalem a couple of months ago to begin his first semester.
His world changed abruptly on Oct.7 when the Hamas militant group attacked Israel.
The Associated Press reported that backed by a barrage of rockets, dozens of Hamas militants broke out of the blockaded Gaza Strip and into nearby Israeli towns, killing more than 1,400 people and abducting more than 200 others in an unprecedented surprise early morning attack during a major Jewish holiday.
A stunned Israel said it is now at war with Hamas and launched airstrikes in Gaza, killing at least 3,785 people so far, according to Palestinian estimates.
The U.S. Department of Defense assets in the Red Sea, Iraq and Syria responded to missile and drone attacks this week.
Paz is a political science major and participated in a real-world discussion of the Israel-Hamas war with Jay Steinmetz, FHSU assistant professor of political science, during a public forum on Oct. 16 at Forsyth Library.
"It's our 9-11," Paz said, who speaks English fluently.
Steinmetz, who has visited Israel, started the talk with a condensed history of the area's longtime political unrest.
Steinmetz said he and Paz had many conversations about the situation.
"I wanted to emphasize something that you told me many times, which is Hamas claims to speak for the Palestinian people. But the majority of Palestinians in Gaza do not support Hamas. There is a big split between Hamas and the Palestinian people they claim to represent," Steinmetz said.
Paz came to FHSU as a member of the cross-country team to run the 400-meter hurdles.
Thanks to his cell phone and the internet, he's been able to talk daily with his family who are "fairly safe" living in Jerusalem, about 60 miles north of Gaza.
Hays is eight hours behind the time in Jerusalem. His phone is always with him and under his pillow at night in case something happens during daytime hours to his family.
He's worried about them. "It's a very difficult time to concentrate," Paz said.
His parents are teachers, who are now working remotely, staying out of school buildings which might become bombing targets. The youngest of his five siblings are attending classes over the internet.
An older sister, who was working with special needs students, has had to stop her job for now.
"This has been a very difficult time for me. [Sports] practice, talking with my teammates and with my friends has made me feel better," Paz said.
Paz told the crowd, comprised of students, faculty and Hays residents, that he, and almost everyone he knows in Israel, knows someone who was killed by Hamas.
His best friend Elad Sasson, a former basketball teammate and a first lieutenant in the Israeli military, was killed in the first few days of fighting at the front.
"I heard it on the news. I don't know how or where he was killed," Paz said.
Military service is mandatory for young Israelis, both men and women. Paz completed his time and is now pursuing a college degree. Many of his friends are still in the army.
"All Hamas terror attacks, all terror attacks actually, are caused by simple, very clear racism and hate," Paz said.
"I would say that racism is not only a problem in the extremists in our world. Racism is very much present in our lives. Maybe it's directed to us. Maybe we direct it towards others.
He said the attacks show what racism can cause.
"I would just ask you guys to share this story, share how positive thinking and good deeds can benefit the world, and to what world hatred can lead us," Paz concluded.
Steinmetz said current events may be a turning event in the Middle East.
"My fear here is that we're going to see more of this in the future," Steinmetz said, "that this is the beginning of a new strategic turn in the conflict with regards to Hamas."
The event was sponsored by Pi Sigma Alpha, the national honor society of political science.